Apparatus for setting plastic eyelets



Mamh 1 c. D. KNOWLTON APPARATUS FOR SETTING PLASTIC EYELETS Filed Dec.8. 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet l March 14, 1944. c. D. KNOWLTON 2,343,982

APPARATUS FOR SETTING PLASTIC EYELETS Filed Dec. 8, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet2 Fig.2. f

' .This invention relates to setting thermoplastic or semi-plastic stateby heat and its shape tire barrel so soft that it will be collapsed bythe invention provides a novel method in which the Patented Mei-.14,1944 UNITED STATES PATENT orr ce astute manuals to: same PLASTIC Erma-scane: nirae'wuen. lockout, Mala, assign: a

United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Flemington, N. 1., a corporationofrlew Jersey e 1 Application December a, 1941.- Serial No. 422,136

Claims. floi; zit-14) I Fig. 1 is aside elevation of a machineembodyeyelets, and includes both an improved method ing theprinciples ofthe present invention: and improved apparatus for utilizing the methodFig. 2 is a plan view, partly in section, of the to upset and clenchsuch .eyelets. The method is work-supporting bed of the machine;

the subject matter of a divisional application Be- Fig. 3 is aperspective view of a typical portion rial No. 484,995, filed April 29,1943. of a shoe upper into which thermoplastic eyelets Both the methodand the apparatus herein have been inserted in readiness for clenchingacillustrated'are predicated upon the use of previcording to the methodhereinafter described; ously molded eyelets of thermoplastic material iFig. 4 is a vertical section, on a magnified scale, each having atubular barrel and a flange or head. including an article 'of work andthe tool assemat one end thereof, blur: no correslpongngtfltange biggiecgniisprisilng tsfidhrelfiing 3:01; f m at the opposite end. e methodere se orth 8. a ong sec on o a ermoproduces a flange at the oppositeend after the plastic eyelet shaded to represent the difl'erentiallatter has been'thrust through the eyelet-receive of temperatureproduced therein by this method: ing material. v and As the term"thermoplastic implies, the ma- Fig. 6 is a verticalsection of the toolassemterial s'o characterized maybe reduced to a plastic l z lncludinEthe clenching 0 1 d a Sp imen of work comprising an eyelet in the finalchanged while in that state. For the purpose stage of being clenchedofthe present invention the eyelets are made of I thermoplastic materialcapable or being softened. prises an anvil 0r eyelet-supporting tool I ain about one second by heat at a temperature heating tool H and aneyelet-setting tool l2. The nearly if not quite, one of the prob toolsIll and ii are not to be heated and will. lems involved in the use ofheat is to soften the remamlat room temperature but t '3 entering end ofan eyelet barrel without spfteng i 'i 3 g g w ing the previously moldedfiangeat the other e b0 i f a d end of, the barrel and without renderingthe en- 3: a f i g sa a? 13 g gg s shamanssashes a: pose upse an c encermop as c eye e I with heated tools, but the use of such tools bothelement there a mum to soften eyelet and upset and clench A shank I!formed on the block i5 projects into has the dlsadvantage of leaving theeyelet in its a socket in a steel block i8 and is aflixed theretosoftest condition after it has been clenched.

by a screw IS. The block I8 is aflixed to a verti- In contrast wlth thattechmque' the present cally movable'carrier 20 by screws 2| but isthermally insulated therefrom by an interposed block 22 of low thermalconductivity. The carrier 20 has a vertical bore through which acylindrical post 23 extends, and;the carrier is capable not only ofsliding up and down on the post but also of being oscillated about theaxis of the post, the purpose of its oscillating movement being to shiftthe tools II and I2 alternately into alignment with the anvil oreyelet-supporting tool I 0.

Referring to Fig. 4 the work-engaging portion of the heated tool II isin the form of a cylindrical sleeve the internal diameter of which isbut little greater than the external diameter of the entering end of aneyelet. A pin 24 in the center of the tool I I projects a short distancebelow the tool and is rounded or tapered to enter the barrel of aneyelet without upsetting the latter, but is of a size to engage theinternal surface 55 of the entering end of the eyelet. Consequently,

step of heating the entering end of the eyelet is terminated before theupsetting step begins, and in which the upsetting and the cooling of theeyelet are contemporaneous. Consequently, when the clenching iscompleted, the heat of the eye let is so greatly dissipated as toestablish a permanent rigidity of the eyelet before the setting pressureis removed therefrom.

The improved apparatus hereinafter described for utilizing this novelmethod provides a heated tool for heating the entering end of an eyeletbarrel, and another tool, not heated, for clenching the eyelet andrestoring its rigidity, the two tools being so related and carried by aturret as, to be capable of being brought successively to a commonoperating locality within an interval of time consistent with thermalrequirements.

Referring to the drawings,

The organization represented in Fig l comthe tool H and the pin 24 forma cylindrical annular space 25 of a size that will receive the enteringend of an eyelet without changing its shape, and the rounded or taperedextremity of the pin will center the eyelet before the latter enters thespace 25. The projecting portion of the pin is therefore effective tocorrect any slight misalignment of the eyelet when the tool H descends.The pin 24 extends into a bore in the heated block I and is fastenedtherein by a setscrew 26. Consequently, the temperature of the pin 24will be as high as that of the tool H and will soften the entering endof an eyelet by contact with the internal surface of the barrel whilethe tool H engages and heats the external surface of the barrel.Moreover, a narrow, circular bead 21 is formed on the lower end of thetool I I to impress a groove in the upper surface of theeyelet-receiving material. The purpose of this groove is to receive therim of the revolute flange into which the entering end of the eyelet isto be transformed by the upsetting tool I2 and thus provide for aninterlocking relation of the eyelet and the layer of eyelet-receivingmaterial so grooved. I

The anvil or eyelet-supporting tool I0 is nested in a socket bored inthe base 30 and is secured therein by a set-screw 3|. This tool isprovided with a central bore for a centering pin 32 of a size that willenter the flange end of an eyelet. The upper end of the tool is providedwith an annular groove of dished section surrounding the centering pin32 to provide a seat for engaging the flange of an eyelet. The pin 32 isnormally projected a short distance above the upper end of the tool I0by a light compression spring 34 but may be depressed by the pin 24 whenthe latter is depressed to its operative position. When the pin 32 isthus depressed it is caught by a locking pin 35 as shown in Figs. 4 and6.

For this purpose the pin 32 is provided with a flange or collar 36 whichsustains the thrust of the spring 34 to raise the centering pin to itsinitial position. The locking pin 35 is also provided with a collar 31against which a compression spring 38 acts to shift the pin to itslocking position. The locking pin projects a short distance from itsbearing in the base 30 to be grasped and retracted by the operator aftereach eyelet has been upset and clenched.

Referring to Fig. 6 the upsetting tool [2 is provided with an annularupsetting surface 40 of concave section adapted to transform theentering end of an eyelet into a revolute flange and to embed the rim ofthat flange in the groove formed in the eyelet-receiving material by thebead 21 of the heated tool I I. The tool I2 is also provided with acentral pilot H of a size that will enter the barrel of an eyelet tobrace the barrel against being collapsed by the upsetting pressure.

The tool I2 is affixed to a plunger 42 and the latter is arranged toslide within close limits in a bore 43 formed in a portion of thevertically movabie'carrier 20. A pin 44 (Fig. 1) amxed to the plunger 42projects radially therefrom and occupies a slot 45 formed in thecarrier. A compression spring 46 located in the bore 43 normallydepresses the plunger 42 to maintain the pin 44 at the lower end of theslot 45, but when the carrier 20 is depressed to operate the tool l2 thespring 45 will yield to prevent applying excessive upsetting pressure tothis tool. The upper end of the spring 45 is seated against a plug 41screwed into the carrier 20 above the bore 43.

The screw connection between the plug 41 and the carrier 25 provides foradjusting the plug to regulate the applied force of the spring.

The heated tool I l and the non-heated tool l2 are arranged side by sideand their axes and the axis of the eyelet-supporting tool III areequally distant from the axis of the post 23. Consequently, the tools IIand I2 may be shifted alternately into register with theeyelet-supporting tool III as a result of oscillating the carrier 20about the post 23. For indexing purposes the carrier 20 is'provided witha boss 48 (Fig. 2) arranged to arrest the carrier when the heated tool His in alignment with the eyelet-supporting tool it and with a boss 49arranged to arrest the carrier when the non-heated upsetting tool I2 isin alignment with the tool i0. These bosses cooperate respectively, withadjustable stops 5D and 5|.

A hand-lever 52 is provided for depressing the carrier 20 in oppositionto the force of a compression spring 53 that surrounds the post 23 andnormally raises the carrier. A fulcrum pin 54 connects the lever 52 andan anchoring post 55 affixed to the base 30. A tension spring 53connected to the lever 52 relieves the compression spring 53 of the loaddue to the weight of the lever. A hardened steel block 51 affixed to thelever 52 is arranged to operate against a portion 58 of the carrier 20to depress the latter, the

portion 58 having sufficient width to maintaincontact with the block 51throughout the range of oscillation of the carrier from side to side.The carrier is provided with a handle 53 by which it may be oscillatedabout the post 23. This handle is so located as to be grasped by theoperators right hand while the operating lever 52 is grasped in the lefthand.

The base 30 is provided with a presser-foot 65 arranged to clamp theeyelet-receiving material of a work-piece against a horizontalsupporting surface 6! of the base. The presser-foot is mounted on afulcrum pin 62 and its forward end is normally depressed, by acompression spring 63 (Fig. 2) that raises its rear end. The rear end ofthe presser-foot may be depressed manually to raise the forward end whena work piece is to be placed on the tool In or removed therefrom.

Fig. 3 represents a typical specimen of the lefthand quarter of a shoeupper into which plastic eyelets have been inserted in readiness to beup set and clenched as hereinafter set forth. In this view the lining 65of the quarter is uppermost and the outer leather 66 is below it. A staystrip 51 of woven fabric or other suitable reinforcing material isinterposed between the lining and the outer leather to reinforce theeyelet row.

The procedure for eyeleting such a work-piece in accordance with thisinvention is as follows: a suitable punch or punching machine is usedfirst to punch a series of eyelet-receiving holes in the eyelet row, thediameter of the holes being preferably slightly smaller than the outerdiameter of the barrels of the eyelets to be inserted. The eyelets maybe inserted in these holes manually or by an automatic machine withoutbein clenched and the barrels will be retained in the holes by friction.Preferably the flanges 58 of the eyelets will be seated on the outersurface of the outer leather 56 and the entering ends 59 will projectbeyond the lining far enough to provide the necessary length to betransformed into revolute clenchingfianges.

A quarter thus provided with unclenched eyelets will be inserted underthe presser-foot 50 in a position that will locate the flange 68 of oneaacaasa of the eyelets in the grooved seat formed in the 4 anvil oreyelet-supporting tool II. If the centering pin 32 in this tool islocked at this time in its depressed position by the locking pin 85 theoperator will retract the latter. The centering pin 32 will now occupythe barrel of the eyelet to maintain it positively in the desiredlocation. With one hand the operator will now swing the carrier 20 tothe right to the position determined by the boss 48 and the stop 50(Fig. 2) thereby placing the heated tool I I in alignment with theeyelet-supporting tool I0. Now, with the left hand, the operator willdepress the operating lever 52 to move the heated tool II intoengagement with the located eyelet and the eyelet-receiving material asrepresented in Fig. 4. The bead 21 formed on the tool II will impress anannular groove in the lining 85 adjacent to the barrel of the eyelet andat the same time the tool II and the pin 24 thereinwill heat theentering end of the eyelet sufficiently to render it soft and capable ofbeing transformed.

In Fig. the zone between the lines A-A and 3-3 indicates the portion ofan eyelet that will be rendered soft'by heat in about one second oftime. The portion of the eyelet below the line BB will not be heated toa degree that will render it soft because this portion is not engaged bythe heated tool I I but is engaged by the nonheated pin 32 and thenon-heated tool ll.

Having held the heated tool ll about one second in the positionrepresented in Fig. 4 the operator will raise the operating lever 62,swing the carrier to the left until the boss 49 is arrested by the stopiii (Fig. 2) and will immediately depress the operating lever again,this time to depress the non-heated upsetting tool I2 againsttheentering end of the eyelet which is still soft enough to be transformed.Now, while the tool I2 is developing a revolute clenching flange in thesoftened portion of the eyelet it will embed the rim of this flange inthe groove produced by the bead 21 and simultaneously reduce thetemperature of the clenched portion and restore it to a hard condition.Moreover, while the tool I! is transforming the entering end of theeyelet its central pilot 4|, now nested in the barrel of the eyelet,will brace the latter against the tendency to be collapsed by thetransforming pressure and the true shape and diameter of theintermediate portion of the barrel will thus be preserved. An intervalof about one second of contact of the tool It with the eyelet issufllcient to perform the transforming operation and to restore thetransformed portion to a hard or rigid state. Now, the operating leverI2 may be raised, the presser-foot It may also be raised, the work maybe shifted to place another eyelet on the tool II. the preaserfoot maybe released, and the locking pin ll may be retracted to permitgthecentering pin 82 to enter the eyelet next to be operated upon.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and ,desire tosecure by Letters Patent of theUnited States is:

1. A machine for setting thermoplastic eyelets comprising a non-heatedeyelet-supporting tool provided with a seat for engaging the flanged endof an eyelet, a heated tool formed and arranged to move into and out oftelescopic relation with the entering end of an eyelet seated on saidsupporting tool, an upsetting tool thermally insulated from said heatedtool, means by which said heated tool and said upsetting tool may beshifted alternately to and from alinement with said supporting tool, andmeans for operating said heated tool and said upsetting tool each in itsalined relation with said supporting tool.

2. An eyeleting machine as'set forth in claim 1 in which said heatedtool is provided with a central eyelet-engaging portion and with asurrounding portion spaced therefrom to form an intermediate cavity toreceive the entering end of an eyelet. without upsetting it.

3. An eyeleting machine as set forth in claim 1 in which said heatedtool is provided with a portion formed to surround and engage theentering end of the eyelet without upsetting it and with a bead formedto impress a groove in the eyeletreceiving material for receiving therim into which the entering end of the eyelet is to be transformed bysaid upsetting tool.

4. An eyeleting machine as set forth in claim 1 in which said heatedtool and said upsetting tool are arranged in a common-carrier movablesidewise to shift them one into and the other out of alinement with saideyelet-supporting tool and movable'otherwise to impart operatingmovement to said tools.

5. A machine for setting thermoplastic eyelets comprising a non-heatedeyelet-supporting tool provided with a seat for engaging a flange at oneend of an eyelet, a heated tool having a bead formed to surround theentering end of an eyelet and impress a groove in the eyelet-receiving.

